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JAPAN
Jan 8, 2021

Osaka stands by COVID-19 tracing app that sent six alerts in seven months

With alerts limited to infectious contact, and no obligation to flag positive status, high volumes of messages were never expected, though the prefecture is working on enhancements.
COMMENTARY / Japan / Geoeconomic Briefing
Jan 8, 2021

The need to digitalize Japanese society as a whole

Japan must take action to ensure its future digital agency doesn't get lost under the rest of the government's apparatus.
JAPAN
Dec 31, 2020

Travelers from Japan face more restrictions amid new virus strain fears

At least 73 countries are tightening their border control measures for travelers from Japan, where cases of the mutated virus have been detected.
JAPAN / Explainer
Dec 29, 2020

Who is affected by Japan’s tightened travel controls?

Technicalities in the revised policy have sparked confusion among new visa applicants and residents over whether they need to scrap plans to leave or return to the nation.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Dec 29, 2020

Biden decries ‘obstruction’ in national security transition

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden accused Trump loyalists at national security agencies of throwing up roadblocks to a smooth presidential transition and warned that adversaries could take advantage of the situation without better cooperation from the outgoing administration.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 22, 2020

SolarWinds adviser warned of lax security years before hack

Cybersecurity researchers have described glaring security lapses at the company, whose software was used in a suspected Russian hacking campaign.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Dec 21, 2020

A summer of solidarity: Looking back on the Black Lives Matter marches in Japan

COVID-19 wasn't the only story of 2020. In May, footage of the murder of George Floyd was posted online and resulted in a month of protest in the U.S. and in Japan.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 18, 2020

Magnitude 5.1 earthquake jolts Izu Oshima area

A magnitude 5.1 earthquake, which measured a weak 5 on the shindo (intensity) scale, was detected in coastal Izu Oshima, on Friday at 6:09 p.m. In the same vicinity, a magnitude 4.7 earthquake, which measured 4 on the shindo scale, was detected at a depth of 10 kilometers in coastal Niijima-Kozushima,...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 15, 2020

Carlos Ghosn investigated by France over possible tax evasion

French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire on Monday declined to confirm a probe into Ghosn's tax affairs.
Japan Times
ESG CONSORTIUM
Dec 11, 2020

ESG awards recognize efforts on energy, child labor

To achieve the 17 U.N. sustainable development goals and bring a better future for all, what is needed is action by not just every government but also all organizations and each person. Borderless collaboration will accelerate such efforts.
Japan Times
ESG CONSORTIUM
Dec 11, 2020

ESG awards recognize efforts of Suntory, Fuji Oil

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors are attracting ever more attention from all stakeholders, from investors to consumers, as some of the most important keys for assessing corporate values, especially in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.
A farmer cuts down cocoa pods from a tree on his farm in Azaguie, Cote d'Ivoire.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 17, 2025

High cocoa prices drive smuggling surge, alarming traders

Cote d'Ivoire is the world's largest cocoa producer, but much higher prices in neighboring countries create an arbitrage that some can't resist exploiting.
A J-15 fighter jet from the Chinese aircraft carrier Shandong makes an unusual approach to a Maritime Self-Defense Force P-3C patrol aircraft that was conducting surveillance above the Pacific Ocean on June 8.
JAPAN
Jun 18, 2025

In rare move, Japan releases map showing Chinese aircraft carrier activities

The decision to release the map comes as concerns grow over Beijing’s apparent efforts to alter the status quo in the region.
The first five months of 2025 saw 18,140,100 visitors enter Japan, up from 14,641,780 in the same period last year.
JAPAN
Jun 19, 2025

Foreign visitors to Japan at record high for May

The increase in visitors during May was driven by travelers from China, Taiwan and the United States, who visited for holidays and on cruise ship port calls.
WhatsApp interactions involving 11 industry executives from ad agencies operating in India form part of a confidential dossier compiled by India's antitrust watchdog that chronicles how global advertising companies coordinated to rig prices in the world's most populous nation.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 19, 2025

Dossier of WhatsApp chats shows how ad agencies aligned to fix prices in India

Firms agreed to cooperate on pricing, including not to undercut each other, colluded to deny business to agencies that didn't comply, and discussed financial terms.
From participants on the JET Programme to full-time content creators, Megan and Ben share their lives in Japan on screen. They recently signed with Tokyo-based influencer agency GeeXPlus.
LIFE / Digital
Jun 19, 2025

The Hitobito's Megan and Ben uncover the real Japan, one video at a time

The couple moved to Japan to be teachers. Now, their YouTube clips are viewed by millions.
Chinese tech startup DeepSeek is helping Beijing with military and intelligence operations, according to U.S. officials.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jun 24, 2025

DeepSeek aids China's military and evaded export controls, U.S. official says

The U.S. conclusions reflect a growing conviction in Washington that the capabilities behind the rapid rise of one of China's flagship AI enterprises may have been exaggerated.
AI is not only transforming the applications we use; it is also reshaping the very process of software development, threatening to render much of today’s tech sector obsolete.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 15, 2025

How artificial intelligence will disrupt Big Tech

AI is already starting to cannibalize established giants and also to reshape the profession of software engineering.
While a trained beekeeper can quickly look at frames in a hive assess their health, AI can do it even faster.
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife
Jun 24, 2025

How robotic hives and AI are lowering the risk of bee colony collapse

Beewise’s units help cut down on losses by providing a near-constant stream of information on colony health in real time and give beekeepers the ability to respond.
A voter takes a photograph of a candidate running for a Tokyo assembly seat, in Tokyo on June 21.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 27, 2025

Lawmaker hints at new social media regulations as misinformation taints elections

Under a new law, social media sites can remove posts defaming political candidates if creators don't respond within two days, but lawmakers say that's too long.
Racks of servers being tested at the new Amazon Web Services facility in New Carlisle, Indiana, on June 3
BUSINESS / Tech
Jun 30, 2025

AI data-center boom could destroy Big Tech's net-zero plans

The tech sector faces a "climate strategy crisis" as its data centers demand ever more electricity and water to power growing fields, such as artificial intelligence.
Taiwan, under constant threat from AI-powered disinformation by authoritarian regimes, has emerged as a global leader in digital democratic defense.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 30, 2025

Taiwan provides a model for digital defense of democracy

As the U.S. and others struggle to confront AI-driven disinformation, Taiwan’s resilience has become its latest key export.
Workers at 5,162 companies affiliated with Rengo secured an average wage increase of 5.25% in this year’s negotiations, according to the final update of pay deals announced Thursday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 4, 2025

Japan’s 2025 wage talks conclude with highest gain in 34 years

Workers at 5,162 companies affiliated with Rengo secured an average wage increase of 5.25% in this year’s negotiations.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange in October 2020
BUSINESS
Jul 4, 2025

Ex-Sumitomo Mitsui Trust official guilty of insider trading

Hajime Katayama, 55, was also fined ¥2 million and ordered to pay ¥61.4 million in additional penalties for his violation of the financial instruments and exchange law.
Lei Jun introduces the Xiaomi YU7 sport utility vehicle during a launch event in Beijing on June 26.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jul 7, 2025

Xiaomi founder’s bold EV bet is paying off where Apple’s failed

The tech firm's success in the EV space has burnished founder Lei Jun’s reputation, making it one of the most valuable companies in China.
Prison guards at the Terrorism Confinement Center, a facility denounced by human rights groups, in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on March 11
WORLD / Politics
Jul 8, 2025

Lawyers say new evidence challenges Trump on El Salvador prisons

The case is one of the highest-profile challenges to the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump's crackdown on immigration.
Mourners pay their respects to former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Tuesday in the city of Nara where he was shot to death while giving a stump speech three years ago.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / EXPLAINER
Jul 8, 2025

Three years after Abe's shooting, where do things stand?

The criminal trial against the alleged shooter is proceeding at a snail's pace due to the sensitivity, complexity and social impact of the case.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi (center) during a Cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington on Tuesday. Bondi had assured Fox News she had a client list of financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein on her desk in remarks endorsed by the White House.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 9, 2025

Trump faces MAGA meltdown over Epstein reversal

The shutting down of conspiracy theories surrounding a purported client list of the notorious sex offender has sparked backlash from the U.S. president's support base.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji